Pilot wanted: No flying experience necessary

SINGAPORE (Reuters Life!) - If being a pilot is your dream job, one of Asia's fastest-growing budget airlines is seeking staff via an online contest, and no flying experience is necessary.

In a competition similar to the "Best Job in the World" contest to find a caretaker for a tropical Australian island, Malaysian airline AirAsia has launched an online plea for pilots, asking candidates to blog why they should get the job.

"So YOU wanna be a pilot? Simple. What do you have to do? Blog. What? That's it? Yes, you're reading it right. Blog," AirAsia said on its official website (blog.airasia.com).

The airline said 10 finalists will be selected, and they will take part in the first round of AirAsia's new pilot intake, which involves spending a day with pilots at the AirAsia Academy.

Bloggers will only be considered if they meet minimum requirements, which include being aged between 18 and 28, having a good command of English and Bahasa Malaysia and being mentally and physically fit, with good eye sight, the website said.

The competition runs from April 1 to May 15th.

In a spoof video blog entry intended to inspire applicants, airline staff list their reasons for wanting to become a pilot, which range from the flippant -- "getting girls," "money and bling-bling" -- to the more serious -- "this has been a lifelong dream as this is a very important and challenging career, where every single day is different."

On Wednesday, AirAsia's CEO Tony Fernandes told Reuters the airline expects to expand its services and remain resilient this year on the back of good demand for budget travel, despite the global recession.